2009 California mid-air collision
The 2009 California mid-air collision occurred at sea, west of San Diego, on 29 October. It involved a Lockheed HC-130H Hercules of the United States Coast Guard and a Bell AH-1 SuperCobra of the U.S. Marine Corps. There were no survivors among the nine crewmates aboard either aircraft.
Accident
At 19:10 local time on 29 October 2009, a Lockheed HC-130H Hercules aircraft of the United States Coast Guard and a Bell AH-1W Super Cobra helicopter of the United States Marine Corps collided in mid-air. The location of the accident was east off San Clemente Island, California. The Hercules was carrying a crew of seven and the Cobra a crew of two people; there were no survivors. Eyewitnesses reported seeing a fireball in the sky. Debris from the collision was reported at the scene. The Hercules was on a Search and Rescue mission to search for an overdue john boat while the Super Cobra was on a training flight. Two Sikorsky CH-53E helicopters along with, and were sent to search the area., and later joined the search.The search for survivors was cancelled on 1 November 2009 after searching of ocean, including approximately of floating debris. The effort was converted to a recovery operation. All nine individuals in the accident, including seven aboard the Coast Guard plane and two aboard the Marine helicopter were presumed dead.
Crew Members
The Coast Guard plane included Lt. Cmdr. Che Barnes of Capay, CA, and his co-pilot, Lt. Adam Bryant of Crewe, VA. The other crew members were Chief Petty Officer John Seidman of Carmichael, CA, a flight engineer; Petty Officer Second Class Carl P. Grigonis of Mayfield Heights, OH, a navigator; Petty Officer Second Class Monica L. Beacham of Decaturville, TN, a radio operator; Petty Officer Second Class Jason S. Moletzsky of Norristown, PA; and Petty Officer Third Class Danny R. Kreder II, of Elm Mott, TX.The crew members aboard the Marine helicopter were Maj. Samuel Leigh of Belgrade, ME, and First Lt. Thomas Claiborne of Douglas, CO.